Vidya For Life(Sisu Diriya)

Introduction

Many children in disadvantaged areas of Sri Lanka between the ages of 10-15 years sadly drop out of school due to extreme poverty, lack of proper facilities, lack of guidance and direction, and other reasons we cannot fathom. These difficulties resulting in children dropping out of school and looking for unsustainable means of living have created an incapacitated society. Sadly, we are already witnessing the repercussions of an emerging society of people not privileged enough to use the facilities that most of us take for granted.

Bridging the Gap Foundation (BGF) has identified this dire need to assist children in rural and some urban areas, particularly where the problem of early school dropouts is rampant. As a result, the "Vidya for Life" –a scholarship program was introduced. 'Vidya' or Education is the panacea that will heal the malignancies of an uneducated society. Supporters of the program are kindly invited to sponsor at least one child to shape the future of their lives. They deserve to have the same opportunities that we have to enable them to reach for their dreams, become a part of society, and become responsible citizens.

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Overall objective

To give hope for a better life to unprivileged kids through education while safeguarding their dignity and self-esteem

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Unique features of the program

• • Strictly guided and monitored
• • The progress of students is reported to sponsors regularly
• • Owned by parents and teachers
• • A shorter cycle of assistance (4 years)
• • Facilitated by the BGF staff
• • Practical and results-based management

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Implementation strategy

• • We target boys and girls from grades 9 to 12, the most vulnerable group with the highest risk of dropping out.
• • We focus on disadvantaged children in urban and rural areas
• • We identify the help-deserving children from selected schools in consultation with the principals of each school based on the following criteria:
• a) Selected children should come from families whose monthly income is below Sri Lankan Rupees 30,000 per month
• b) Children who are bright and keen to study but unable to do so because of their low income and lack of guidance
• c) Children between ages over 12 years (basically not too young or too old)
• d) The program is implemented by BGF in collaboration with other public and private sector partners

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Management of the program

• • Local and foreign sponsors become the owners of the preprogram by financially contributing to the program
• • A small monitoring committee consisting of a school teacher, a religious leader, and a representative of BGF is established at each school
• • Ten children each from 20 selected schools are initially targeted
• • The scholarship stipend is to be deposited in a Bank in the name of the child/guardian by BGF. Guardian is usually the mother of the child
• • The monthly scholarship stipend is released only after clearance from the monitoring committee. Guardian has to show receipts proving that the money received in the previous month is utilized only for the child's education
• • An effective mechanism to report progress to the sponsors has been set up
• • Social events involving sponsored children are organized
• • Annual reports of the expenses for each sponsored child are provided to the sponsors

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Monitoring results

• • A vital feature of the program is the systematic monitoring of the progress of the sponsored students
• • BGF ensures constant feedback to sponsors about the sponsored child's progress with regular monitoring with the involvement of Monitoring Committees established at relevant schools. This Committee consists of a teacher, a village priest, sponsors if available, and a BGF staff
• • The continuation of each scholarship depends primarily on (a) the funds are used only for educational expenses (tuition fees, bus season tickets, books, etc.) and (b) the academic progress of each recipient.

Implementer: Bridging the Gap Foundation

• • VidyaForLife program is designed and executed by BGF, a regional non-profit and non-governmental organization with a novel approach to development, which emphasizes the importance of bridging developmental gaps in poverty, education, and health for inclusive and sustainable development
• • BGF coordinates and oversees the implementation and monitors the results
• • BGF is headed by Dr. Ravi Ratnayake, the former Chief Economist and the Director of the Poverty and Development Division of the United Nations for the Asia-pacific region. Dr. Ratnayake has experience over 35 years of experience in poverty reduction, economic development, and CSR
• • BGF does not charge professional fees except minimal operational costs (secretarial and program assistance, communication charges, stationery, etc.) for implementing the program.
• • BGF builds partnerships with other entities to enrich the program
• • Takes actions to mobilize more resources

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How you can participate

• • We implore you to help us make a difference in the lives of these underprivileged children, to help us retain the innocence of their childhood, and to help allow them to empower them with education.
• • Sponsors can provide financial assistance monthly, semi-annually, and annually or any amount of donation at any time
• • To ensure your hard-earned money comes to the correct account of the BGF, you are requested to inform us before or immediately after funds are deposited by contacting Program Manager: Miss Eranga Rajapaksha via info@bgfasia.org or +94704666767 (call or WhatsApp)
• • Sponsors and supporters can become a fund-raising coordinators by sending this message to your networks of friends and colleagues and coordinating with us
• • Funds from any sources will have to come to the account given below. The BGF has no other branches or accounts

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If you are willing to support this program, please deposit your donation in the account given below. For ease of administrative processes, we recommend considering the following donation amounts or any other amount as per your preference:

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We accept donations in the form of wire transfers and deposits at the following accounts: